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Yeva Chelki
Feasible character genres: primarily gothic horror, horror in general, urban fantasy, crime, political drama, drama in general, psychological thriller. With some lolz, because I am incapable of playing non-trolly people, I guess. alors, j'ai l'histoire d'une fille forte Yeva is a twenty-one-year-old woman living near a remote village called Porthkerry in Wales; she is the middle of three sisters, classed as the quietest and most elusive of them, possibly due to her cloistered upbringing. Her family is the oldest of old money, except for that brief, ugly spot where they fled Armenia for German-speaking Switzerland when Yeva was a child, and have a lineage they track back thousands of years, particularly on her father's side of the family. The family, or what remains of it today, presently lives in a large estate featuring a castle ruin rumored to have connections to witchcraft, and as they are of Yezidi descent (for the most part, which is something of a family secret), they tend to keep to themselves or other Yezidi families, or at least this is the surface explanation. One of the few families to have such a firm grasp on their history as witches, dating all the way back to prehistory, they are meticulous about not inflicting their secret world on bystanders, having learned through trial and error that it's easy to destroy an innocent person with things they didn't know were real--or, indeed, with the power that the descendants of Melek Taus's haftan and the earliest Bene Elohim can possess. What makes the Chelkis exceptional is that they are the only family to now have blended the fading older lines with the new, and their success suggests it can be done again. une fille qui lutte avec amour Full name: Yeva (Eve) Shoushan (Lily) Kadriye (Fate) Chelki. Age/DOB: 21; December 21, 1989. Zodiac: Sagittarius (independent, exploring, inquisitive, restless, stubborn), Scorpio rising (intense, passionate, "still waters run deep", unpredictable, intuitive), Snake year (mystical, deep thinker, soft-spoken, self-doubting, distrustful). Sagittarius is an air sign, but the latter two are fire signs; Snake is a yin or dark/female sign as well. Profession: Linguist and historian, of sorts, specializing in the oldest of ancient history. Height/Weight: 5'9"/128 lbs. Hair/Skin/Eyes: Dark brown/fair/brown-black. Ethnicity/Nationality: Yezidi Kurdish/British. Education: Privately educated in her early childhood. Later, convent education, followed by a degree in linguistics (minoring in a history of war) at King's College. Residence: Isobel House. Languages: ...bunches; she is a linguist. English, Armenian, Kurdish (three original languages), Latin and Greek/Koine (convent education, again), Arabic, Italian, German, Russian, Farsi, French; passable in Hebrew, can read some Aramaic, Elamite, Akkadian, and Sumerian. This does not include the writing systems which are just English letters translated to readable symbols, such as in Theban or other magical languages. The sad truth is that only the last five are considered above and beyond in her family. Family: Aram Chelki (paternal grandfather), Arousyag Der Sarkisian Chelki (paternal grandmother), Artaxiad Chelki (father), Takouhi Şimşek Chelki (mother), Lale Chelki (older sister); Anahit Chelki (younger sister). Ziazan Chelki Grigorian (paternal aunt), Avedis Grigorian (paternal uncle by marriage), Siroun Grigorian (paternal cousin), Antranig Grigorian (paternal cousin). Levent Şimşek (maternal grandfather), Sahiba Barzani Şimşek (maternal grandmother). More NPC info found here. Aesthetics: Yeva is tall, just about five foot nine, and somewhat slender in build, although some of that is deceptively wiry muscle, since she's in very good shape from training that focuses more on stamina and speed than brute strength. She has fairly light peaches-and-cream-complected skin that doesn't tan very well (not that she sees a lot of sun in her city, anyway), and loosely curly, thick dark brown hair that reaches just past her shoulder blades--it is usually tied back in a ponytail or braid, owing to there being a lot of it. Her eyes are even darker than her hair, the kind of brown that often appears black; as she is large-eyed and heavy-lashed, with well-defined brows, they're probably one of her more distinctive features. Her bone structure is also very noticeable, with prominent cheekbones, a high and slightly rounded forehead, a strong, well-defined jawline, a straight nose, and full lips that all create an old-fashioned, classical sort of prettiness; of her family, she is considered the beauty, but that sort of thing is so common among the descendants of the Bene Elohim, it's also not that special. She has a small tattoo of an ouroboros on her lower stomach/near her hip (a half-inch below the pantyline, for concealment purposes--it's not forbidden, but it's not looked on fondly, either) with mild interest in acquiring another someday, and her ears are pierced once each. Voice: An alto, with good diction and a faint accent that's a mishmash of Italian, Armenian, and English. Clothing: Lots of white (sort of a signature/trademark color for her particular clan, so it's actually got meaning behind it), particularly in outerwear, with bold scarves, and otherwise generally deep, rich colors, with few patterns, besides plaid, as she has a fondness for riding-inspired clothing. On a typical day her style is very feminine and upscale, but not flashy--everything is well-made without necessarily requiring high heels every day of the week, especially since she spends a good amount of time out-of-doors. She wears lots of sweaters, thigh-high tights, boots, long-sleeved blouses, skirts both pencil and not; favorite fabrics include velvet, wool, leather, and silk, but she's certainly got her fair share of casual denim in jeans and shorts, too. When she does dress up, it's fitted, but still seldom showy (although she can appreciate a touch of that); she's girly and put-together, but in a clean, spare kind of way, with a little going a long way. Her jewelry is usually antiques, and while she often doesn't wear any at all, if she does, she likes dangling earrings and discretion with the rest--never more than two or three items at once, usually two at max. She dresses, in short, like someone for whom style is background noise, so normal a part of her life it doesn't need need much minding. Preferred designers include Stella McCartney, Marc Jacobs, Oscar de la Renta, Prada, Balenciaga, YSL, Temperley, Helmut Lang, Donna Karan, La Petite Salope, Chloe, Alberta Ferretti, Paul & Joe, and sometimes Chanel. Jewelers include Cartier, Tiffany (mostly just their pendants), Audemars Piguet, Diego Percossi, Van Cleef and Arpels, Chopard, Harry Winston, and the Aletto Brothers. She also has a trademarked red cape of particular importance. Polyvores. Perfume: * Creed "Angelique Encens" (1933): Signature. Created for Marlene Dietrich in her movie "Blue Angel", evocative of pleasant church incense mixed with vanilla, with a dark, deliberately blasphemous undercurrent. Warm, smoky, dreamlike, and sweet, without approaching saccharine, due to a faint leather note. * Hermes "Doblis" (1955): Second/warm weather. pour remplir sa mission elle me dit que les hommes enfants ne sont pas bons pour moi Yeva is the middle daughter of Artaxiad Chelki and Takouhi Şimşek Chelki. Her father, Artaxiad, is an Armenian-born Yezidi Kurd (with a grandmother who just happens to have been French, not that this is common knowledge) who is also a descendant from one of the earliest lines of witches. This means his family's craft has been largely depleted over the years, demonstrating most strongly in the occasional female descendant, though each of them has a very small amount of the gift. Witchcraft, in Yeva's world, comes from being descended from one of the Bene Elohim, or the child of an angel (fallen or not, though the early ones were all fallen, known as Nephilim- Yeva's specific paternal ancestor, from the pre-Flood era, was called Semyaza). Sorcery can be practiced by people who are purely human- witchcraft is an art, done by instinct, and sorcery is more of a science. Yeva's mother Takouhi, however, is a Yezidi of Turkish origin who comes from the new lines of magic, meaning her ancestor was not necessarily fallen, and is furthermore much more recent, making Takouhi markedly less human and considerably more potent in her talents. Of the three daughters, Yeva is the most blatantly a child of the new lines; she can barely be considered a descendant of Semyaza at all, and has been almost completely dominated by the blood of Melek Taus's first mate- culturally, though, she was raised with the old traditions, occasionally chafing against them violently. She tries very hard to fit in with the rest of her family, and is dismayed when she fails. In French-speaking countries (among others), the lines of witches are called the Culte de la Laurier-rose, or the Cult of the Oleander, written about in history books for their peculiar practices; they were known for being beautiful, poisonous women and a few men who sabotaged political schemes and lived life with vicious ruthlessness. They became exclusive, over the years, recognizing that a) their powers faded with continuing to interbreed with humans and b) inflicting their world on hapless normal people was sort of cruel. Mundanely, they were considered one of the groups most persecuted by the witch hunts of the 15th and 16th centuries, with hundreds being burned or hanged. Yeva was born in Sevan, on the lake of the same name. Her father is a sheykh, which is the third political rank (first are the princes, and the second are the religious leaders, akin to a pope), equivalent to dukedom; this grants them a certain amount of mobility and respect within the community, and all sheykh families are said to have special talents, so the idea that the Chelkis are particularly gifted is nothing new. Alternately referred to as "devil-worshipers," "the cult of the angels," and "the cult of the oleander" (the last is rarest, applies strictly to the small magical sect, and is only really done by those versed in both history and the supernatural), Yezidis in general don't have the easiest time in Armenia, but the Chelkis particularly endured some persecution. When Yeva was eight, a skirmish over land turned into a larger civil dispute, and after brutally handling the uprising by the locals who'd objected to the Chelki's presence and estate, Takouhi was eventually outnumbered and killed -- a member of the local government was present, which is what led to her refusal to blatantly use her abilities publicly. If she outed herself, she would also out her entire family, and to someone with power. Like many Yezidis, the Chelkis left for Switzerland, eventually settling while destitute in St. Moritz. Gradually, her father built up their means again, with the help of local Italian, Romansh, and German contacts -- they'll always be endogamous, but other witches' lines are acceptable as friends and allies. During this time, Yeva was thought to be a faqra (priestess, or women acknowledged to have supernatural gifts such as diagnosing and curing illness and knowing what happened to a deceased person's soul) in the making, and not her father's biological child, but her father insisted emphatically that she was his. The seed of doubt remained in Yeva; it was yet another thing that made her different. Eventually, their existence in St. Moritz attracted some attention, specifically that of operatives from an organization called Numen, who were keen on studying such young examples of magic. The pressure became sort of unbearable, and Yeva, even at about eleven, was aware that they were engaged in a war just under the surface of ordinary reality- when she and her older sister were complicit in at least two deaths just before Yeva turned thirteen, both girls were tortured by operatives for several days before being freed. This is not at all unusual, with all the political strife, and in a twisted way they thought of it as a coming-of-age experience: the universe was telling them that they were old enough to deal with their reality. Following that incident, the family impersonated Catholics, going so far as to live under assumed names, and around this time, Yeva's sister met a man named Sarmen Minassian, another Yezidi of similar caste and from a similarly considerably weakened magical line; Sarmen's talents were largely only in his sensitivity, nothing more. He began assisting Yeva's father, Artaxiad, with the family business and rebuilding their finances, but had little do with Yeva or her younger sister, both of whom were sent to live in and be educated at a convent called the Abbaye Notre-Dame Ambronay, in the Rhone-Alpes region of France, nestling it neatly in the mountains, where it is difficult to find. The girls came home very rarely, but eventually their father had resettled in Wales with Sarmen living in town nearby, Artaxiad's father Aram, and Yeva's older sister, Lale. They no longer used aliases, and had property away from town. Both Yeva and her sister Anahit were given the option to come home; Anahit did, being understandably quite keen on going back to the luxuries of their estate, but Yeva stayed at the convent to finish her education. At seventeen, she briefly came home, but her relationship with Lale's boyfriend was problematic on multiple levels (they both hated each other and were attracted to one another, which is not a good combination), so Yeva persuaded her father to permit her to attend university in London. Her grandfather -- whose health was not good -- helped her with this not inconsiderable task quite a bit, and she ended up attending King's College with an extremely full schedule: her focus was linguistics, with a side of historical war studies. For the first two years, she lived in housing provided by the school, but eventually found a roommate who was in graduate studies at the college, an Argentine immigrant by the name of Delcine; they bonded quickly and Yeva provided a confidante during Delcine's turbulent relationship with her girlfriend. Not surprisingly, Yeva grew up a lot. In her third year of school, Yeva met a Turkish-British boxer named Volkan Şahin; he pursued her pretty charmingly for a good few months before she relented (it was hardly nonstop, just whenever they happened to see one another). Despite the fact that he didn't come from a background anything like hers -- his family had little money, and he wasn't particularly scholastically inclined, though by no means unintelligent in his way -- they developed a relationship. The difficulty, of course, was their ethnic pasts. Neither of them thought it was a good idea to introduce the other to their families, but Yeva risked exile or death if she was ever caught with him, and after ten months together, he wanted to marry her. Yeva supposes that she said no meant she didn't really love him, though she thought she did; he was not part of her world, though, and she feared what would happen if she introduced him to it. Not to mention exile was sort of a daunting prospect--this wasn't just about her family, but also her identity. In retrospect, she probably could have handled that better, but he was only her first boyfriend. The last three months until she completed her schooling were chaotic for a lot of reasons: at one point someone got it into their head to start abducting or killing young vampires (vampires being not especially high on the supernatural social strata, making them a bit vulnerable if you know what you're doing) with the intention of selling them to Numen for a great deal of profit. Yeva was able to intercede, after being asked for her assistance, but she's not sure she did anything more than cut one head off the hydra -- there will always be more looking to exploit others in order to make some money. Things with Volkan were also extremely strained, since they'd broken up, but things didn't feel resolved -- instead of really settling that before going home, as she was being pressured to return to the estate upon graduation, she just gave him a written goodbye and left. Going home was, in and of itself, a little strange. Now she was supposed to be settling down, or at least completely adult; still, she didn't know if she really liked returning to the parental fold after time living independently, even if in their family that's the custom. Furthermore, Lale and Sarmen were engaged, and her sister, whom she is closest with of anyone else in the family, has turned into something of a Bridezilla type. Isolated, tempestuous, and looking for an escape is a recipe for trouble in almost anyone, but particularly in a descendant of one of Melek Taus's haftan. Even a generally empathetic person like Yeva is no exception. puis elle me tient jusqu'à la glace et place des bijoux dans mes﻿ yeux game history et j'ai une petite histoire sur ce garçon à l'esprit libre Baseline abilities for witches include: * Poisonous blood -- this is something carried in all witches, thus the "Cult of the Oleander" name, but is much more lethal in the new lines, like Yeva's. (Her username, lilyconstancy, is a reference both to one of her middle names--Shoushan means Lily--and to the lily of the valley, which is in fact a fatally poisonous plant, and one that causes mental confusion and heart problems. In legends, the lily of the valley can refer to Eve's tears after being driven from the garden of Eden, and is used in Chrsitian imagery to evoke both humility and the power of men to envision a better world; reversed, its presence suggests temptation and lasciviousness.) * An affinity with nature, animals particularly, though the strength of this varies * Magical aptitude, which needs to be honed, or it can be harmful to the practitioner Non-magical but common characteristics of the witches' lines often include an inability to fit in with the social milieu, a propensity toward hedonistic behavior, and a problem with authority. This probably spells out some of why they've historically had such a great time, particularly in periods of great religious fervor. Witches in Yeva's universe are varying levels of human, depending on how long they've had to interbreed, and it does take thousands of years to really lessen what are some extremely strong abilities. The five new lines of which Yeva is a part, or the Yezidi-descended women who have the closest connection to the demiurge, largely do not really know what they are--which includes an actress publicly known as Norea Serhati, who is the purest of them, being directly descended from Melek Taus himself--and are frequently thrown into the world unacquainted with how to control their abilities. They are often harmful to themselves and others. Sometimes they have their powers bound, as erasing them isn't really plausible, or they simply never try to relate and fit in with humanity. Yeva, however, has been fortunate enough to have training, so she does the best job of straddling the lines between the human sphere and the Bene Elohim's. This doesn't mean she never screws up or becomes overwhelmed, but she does at least have decent coping mechanisms at her disposal. Some abilities Yeva has a particular knack for: * Psychometry * Bio-control (self-related only) c'est﻿ mon frère, c'est un pionier; il m'a dit "tu es tout et tout est tien" Of her three sisters - and indeed, her entire family - Yeva is the one for whom the otherness of her identity is the most obvious. A faint trace of magic clings to her wherever she goes, and whether it is unsettling or simply curious to an onlooker depends on their perspective. She feels like a constant outsider, a role that is occasionally depressing, but she is otherwise resigned to it; she is separated from ordinary people both by her cloistered ethnic upbringing, in a strictly endogamous culture, and by the fact that even within that group, they are unusual, part of the Culte de la Laurier-rose on her father's side and of the new caste of witches on her mother's. She is quiet (in a group, anyway--she warms, considerably, in smaller settings) but expressive, often regarded as seeming to be "in her own little world". In her case, also, quiet does not mean she lives a quiet life or isn't verbal, since she loves languages; she uses silence, rather like a wall or a weapon, and her family is always sort of amused when strangers say she's shy. She tends to be deeply investigative and knowledge-driven as much as she is intuitive, and while she is aware of the concept of boundaries, occasionally she disregards them, though not without some consideration first. Usually. For all her silence in many situations, her nature is a somewhat fiery one, defiant when she chooses to be. Some people you can know in the first five minutes of meeting them, and they want you to know them, but Yeva is the opposite of one of those people, and she is not convinced anyone really sees her, even her loved ones, and a part of that is her own fault for withdrawing. Some of it is also that she surprises even herself with her willfulness, and will almost certainly continue to do so as she is tested by the world around her. She tries to be analytical, and often is successful, but she's a go-by-the-gut kind of girl, and it shows. Pressure in her family is subtle but heavy; they carry with them the knowledge that they have survived as an ethnic group for longer than almost any other, taking pride in the longevity of their line while they're also aware that it limits their ability to interact with the world around them. Secrecy seems vital to their survival, and furthermore keeping their marriages within witches -- more relevant on her father's side of the family -- keeps their magic more potent, which is absolutely something to be concerned with in this day and age. Unfortunately, as with all endogamous societies (particularly those with a history of being oppressed by whites, or other majorities in their countries of residence), bad behavior and old traditions are allowed to continue unchecked, and none of them are exempt from exile if they break the rules. SOON: * books (nerdiness ahoy) * boy trouble (accidental heartbreaker) * violins and politics * quietness ensemble ils réparent mon coeur brisé et en chantant chansons circulaires boys ensemble ils sont ma famille et avec eux je suis à mort girls tu es un grand cheval noir, me dit-elle et un petit chevalier te trouvera Tonic - "Wicked Soldier" :: Oh, tell the tale of the wicked soldier, oh, tell the tale of the wicked man; they say they heard him cry the fool's prayer, they say that - they just say that. Some say the rope, she is free, some say the rope, she is hanging. She says take the rope to hang upon me. So say the wise - she can't hear you. Some say that - they just say that. For oh, my love's by the old tin wall, she's waiting there - she's waiting there for me. All others will compare to her. Florence and the Machine - "Rabbit Heart (Raise It Up)" :: We raise it up, this offering. I must become a lion-hearted girl, ready for a fight before I make the final sacrifice. And in the spring I shed my skin, and it blows away with the changing wind. The waters turn from blue to red as towards the sky I offer it. This is a gift, it comes with a price; who is the lamb and who is the knife? Midas is king and he holds me so tight, and turns me to gold in the sunlight. This is a gift. 8stops - "Esteem" :: On nights like these she can be herself; she forgets I'm there, but it's just as well. What makes her see the things she sees, like everything that's wrong with me? I guess I should stop trying to figure her out, I should know by now that I'm not allowed, if I want to keep her coming round. She says she hates the fact that men can see, she wants to tear the eyes out of every living thing. Tonight she's wide awake, making small talk with Mr. Moon, singing louder than the rain. He listens to everything she says, and he doesn't try to understand; never expects to be let in. He just hangs on every word that comes from the mouth of this little girl. The Meteors - "Red Riding Hood" :: Little red riding hood, I don't think little big girls should go walking in spooky old woods alone. PJ Harvey - "The Whores Hustle and the Hustlers Whore" :: Speak to me of universal laws. Speak to me of your inner charm, of how you'll keep me safe from harm. I don't think so, I don't see. Speak to me of your inner peace. Little people at the amusement park, city people in the dark, speak to us, send us a sign, tell us something to keep us trying. This city's ripped right to the core. Speak to me of heroin and speed, of genocide and suicide, of disease and greed. Speak to me the language of love, the language of violence, the language of the heart. This isn't the first time I've asked for money or love; heaven and earth don't ever mean enough. Just give me something I can believe. Vienna Teng - "Between" :: I have a prophecy threatening to spill into words. Freedom is being alone; I fear liberation, but something more alive than silence swallows conversation. There once was a time when I was sure of the bond, when my hands and my tongue and my thoughts were enough. We are the same, but our lives move along. Her Space Holiday - "Something To Do With My Hands" :: My problem with me is my problem with you, but I'll do my best to keep you, keep you sleepy as the south with my old watch on your wrist and my thumbs inside your mouth--suck on my fingertips until you kill all my prints, so your boyfriend has no clue of how much I've been touching you. You know it kills me to see such a pretty girl so tired; you've got your mother's cheekbones and your father's crooked smile. Forget all those places that you've never really been, and all those situations you somehow found yourself in. Let your body sink like your favorite memory, like a line of poetry, or a fucking fit of honesty. Thursday - "Sugar in the Sacrament" :: What have you done? You followed footsteps in the dark and found your faith left out behind your father's car. You said, "there's no one watching over me or over you anymore." I'm sinking still right into: oh, my God, where are we now? If it was just one night, then we would be released; tie these lies between our teeth, keep tearing open bodies, let it bleed. Holy, holy, lift up your dress, feel your body dissolving, like sugar in the sacrament. "If it was just one night, then you could be redeemed, tie these sins between your teeth, make hollow promises we'll never keep tonight." Fight with me, let me touch you. This is all we have ever known of God. parcourant les rues,﻿ parcourant les déserts il viendra, car tu es amour Yeva Chelki is an original character affiliated with the London Mysteries universe (despite not living in London, the same rules of the world apply), and is portrayed by lovely actress Selin Demiratar. The lyrics used as title headers are from "Circle Song" by Bat for Lashes, and a translation of the French can be found here. Category:Characters Category:Living